Foto Gallery

The SST prototype: structure and mirrors

3D CAD model of the telescope; the main parts are indicated. The pillar hosts the driving and bearing systems and it is
composed by the base, the tower and the fork. The telescope hosts the
optical system and it is composed by the primary mirror’s dish, the
quadrupode mast and the secondary mirror’s dish. The ballast
counteracts the overhang of the telescope.

3D view of the optical design implemented for the ray-tracing simulations.

Drawing of the telescope structure with the definitions of the main
dimensions and axes.

Finite Element Model of the complete telescope’s system. By means of proper analysis, it is used to evaluate the
telescope’s performances under pre-defined loading conditions.

Glass shell bent to the profile of the outer ring of the telescope primary mirror.

Detailed drawing of the telescope dish and mast structure.

The integration mold for the realization of the M1 mirror segments.

Final design of the M1 segments
supporting triangle. It is visible the tangential restrain that support the mirror weight, the fixed point and the two axial
actuators

Detailed drawing of the M2 supporting structure. The large secondary mirror is sustained by means of load-spreaders (at the actuators end) as well as tangential
restrains.

Photographic picture of the supporting and alignment structure of the primary mirror segments. Clearly visible are the pretensioned springs; they are calibrated to counteract the the pressure generated by winds blowing up to 120 km/h. An aluminum plate is mounted as mirror dummy.

Photographic picture of a mirror segment’s prototype. The
mirror has the off-axis aspherical profile required by the outer ring
of the optical layout. It has been manufactured at the
INAF-Osservatorio Astronomico di Brera with the glass Cold-Shaping
technology. PVD (Physical Vapor Deposition) has been used to apply the
reflecting coating; it is made of a multilayer of pure dielectric
materials whose thicknesses are optimized to have a filtering behavior
with the reflecting band between 350 nm and 650 nm.

The SST prototype: camera

Structural model of the focal surface with some mock-ups of the
Photons Detection Modules.

Close view of the first serie of the mechanical demonstrators of the
"pyramidal" light guides.